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Sentence Illustrating the Problem
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1. Being consistent
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Sequence of tenses
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After he broke his arm, he is home for two weeks.
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After he broke his arm, he was home for two weeks.
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Shift of pronoun
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If one is tense, they should try to relax.
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If one is tense, one should try to relax.
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Parallelism
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She skis, plays tennis, and flying hang gliders.
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She skis, plays tennis, and flies hang gliders.
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Noun agreement
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Carmen and Sarah want to be a pilot.
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Carmen and Sarah want to be pilots.
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Pronoun reference
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Several people wanted the job, and he or she filled out the required applications.
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Several people wanted the job, and they filled out the required applications.
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Subject-verb agreement
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There is eight people on the shore.
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There are eight people on the shore.
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2. Expressing ideas logically
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Coordination and subordination
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Tawanda has a rash, and she is probably allergic to something.
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Tawanda has a rash; she is probably allergic to something.
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Logical comparison
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Nathan grew more vegetables than his neighbor's garden.
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Nathan grew more vegetables than his neighbor grew.
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Modification and word order
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Barking loudly, the tree had the dog's leash wrapped around it.
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Barking loudly, the dog wrapped its leash around the tree.
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3. Being clear and precise
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Ambiguous and vague pronouns
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In the newspaper they say that few people voted.
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The newspaper reported that few people voted.
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Diction
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He circumvented the globe on his trip.
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He circumnavigated the globe on his trip.
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Wordiness
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There are many problems in the contemporary world in which we live.
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There are many problems in the contemporary world.
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Improper modification
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If your car is parked here while not eating in the restaurant, it will be towed away.
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If you park here and do not eat in the restaurant, your car will be towed away.
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4. Following conventions
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Pronoun case
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He sat between you and I at the stadium.
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He sat between you and me at the stadium.
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Idiom
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Natalie had a different opinion for her.
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Natalie had a different opinion of her.
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Comparison of modifiers
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Of the sixteen executives, Naomi makes more money.
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Of the sixteen executives, Naomi makes the most money.
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Sentence fragment
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Fred having to go home early.
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Fred has to go home early.
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Comma splice
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Mary took time out of her busy schedule to visit her aunt, John decided to continue working through the summer.
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Mary took time out of her busy schedule to visit her aunt, but John decided to continue working through the summer.
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5. Recognizing Effective Writing
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Some sentences require students to recognize that there is no error. |
Characteristics of Effective Writing